'Charlemagne'

PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING SAMPLE ITINERARIES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE AND ARE A ‘TASTE’ OF WHAT YOU MIGHT DO ON YOUR CRUISE. CHANGES ARE AT THE DISCRETION OF THE BARGE OPERATORS.

Saturday
We meet in central Amsterdam this afternoon and transfer to the Charlemagne moored in Vreeswijk. A welcome on board champagne reception and presentation of the crew before you are shown to your cabin. We will have a delightful cruise this afternoon along the river Lek to Schoonoven, well known for its silver jewelry and traditional clock making since the 17th c. There will be time to stroll into this charming town after dinner on board.

Sunday
A morning cruise to Kinderdijk where we will visit the 19 windmills which are part of Unesco World Heritage; they were built in 1740 to drain the polders. At lunchtime we will cruise along the Hollandse Ijsell river, passing by the skyline of Rotterdam, one of the world’s largest seaports. Later in the afternoon, a walking tour of Gouda, famous for its cheese, pipes and candles.

Monday
After breakfast, a visit to see the remarkable stained glass windows in St John’s church dating from the 15th c. Afterwards we cruise to Oude Wetering on the Gouwe and Oude Wetering canals. Poulders which are low lying lands reclaimed from the sea stretch out in every direction. This afternoon, an excursion to the Keukenhof Gardens, famous throughout the world for their dazzling fields of tulips, daffodils and hyacinths.

Tuesday
An early morning visit to the worlds biggest flower auction in Aalsmeer where some 10 billion flowers are sold every year. Later we cruise on the Ringvaart canal, skirting one of Holland’s oldest polders. In the afternoon, a tour of Haarlem, the center of the Dutch bulb trade followed by a cruise to Pumerend.

Wednesday
A very scenic cruise passing fields of blooming flowers to Alkmaar where we will have a guided visit of the town’s monuments: 17th c fortifications, St Lawrence church with one of the finest ancient organs in Holland, the majestic 15th c gothic Town Hall and many picturesque old houses. There will be time for shopping.

Thursday
A morning cruise to Zaansche Schans, a reconstructed village of wooden houses and windmills, transporting us 300 years into the past. Our cruise ends in the heart of Amsterdam where we will have a guided tour of the many monuments with time for shopping. This evening is our farewell gala dinner.

Friday
After breakfast, depart the barge for your onward travel.

Koblenz to Metz (and reverse), on the Moselle River in Germany Available 23 May to 31 October 2009

SATURDAY - KOBLENZ
We meet in Frankfurt and transfer to MS Charlemagne moored in the city of Koblenz, a welcome aboard reception will await you and then you will be shown to your cabins, time to settle into your accommodations before dinner is served at 7.30pm

SUNDAY - KOBLENZ-COCHEM-ZELL
A morning cruise on the Moselle brings us to Cochem, this famous riverside town is dominated by its medieval castle. Later, during a wine tasting you will be able to familiarize yourself with the different wines of the region. We return to Charlemagne and continue our cruise to the small wine village of Zell, known for its wine Zeller Katz.

MONDAY - ZELL-BERNKASTEL-TREVES
The Moselle winds and turns and takes a route along the terrain which is entirely cultivated with vines which extend as far as the eye can see, occasionally broken by small villages. We make a stop at Bernkastel-Kues for a visit to this small town and its half timbered houses. We continue our cruise to Treves where we will overnight.

TUESDAY - TREVES-KONZ-MERZIG-METTLACH
After breakfast, a tour of the city of Treves. This city was the capital of the Occidental Roman Empire in the 3rd c and was named Rome of the North. Treves can qualify, along with Worms as the oldest town in Germany. Its remarkable collection of Roman ruins have been classified as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. We return to Charlemagne in time for lunch and continue our cruise. In Konz, we leave the Moselle valley for the Sarre valley, which cuts a clear path through the solid mountains of Hunsruck, causing the river to wind and twist which only embellishes the route and helps to conserve the authenticity. The passage of the loop of the Sarre is one of the highlights of the cruise. We arrive into Mettlach in the evening, the town is most famous as the headquarters of the ceramics company Villeroy & Boch.

WEDNESDAY - METTLACH-KONZ-REMICH
This morning, an excursion in our motor coach to Cloef for the impressive panoramic view of the loop of the river Sarre. We continue to Saarburg, a picturesque town dominated by its imposing ruined castle, classified as an historical monument. The streets of the town are narrow and the half timbered houses date from the middle ages, also there is a waterfall, over sixty feet high in the very center of the town, this gives a very charming aspect and is one reason the town is sometimes called Little Venice. We rejoin the Charlemagne in Konz and continue our cruise, we are back on the river Moselle and arrive into Remich. This charming small town is part of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and we will take an excursion there this afternoon. The capital is a thousand years old, fascinating, built on rock and called the Gibralta of the North. The guided visit will explain the historical and financial aspects and its function as the headquarters of several European institutions. We return to Charlemagne in Remich.

THURSDAY - REMICH-METZ
This morning we will visit the Roman mosaiques of Nenning. They were discovered in 1852 as part of an immense villa with this sumptuous mosaique wall measuring 16 x 10 meters, this is the largest, most beautiful and best preserved north of the Alpes. We return to the boat and cruise, we are now in France, as far as Metz. The countryside changes radically and we leave the hills and vineyards behind us, replaced by the vast plains of the Lorraine. This afternoon, a visit to Metz, the city is Roman, medieval, classic, German and keeps its aspects from its three thousand years of history. The cathedral of Saint-Etienne is world renown for its stained glass which covers a surface of 6496 square meters. We have the pleasure of admiring the masterpieces from the 13th c until recent times, including works by Marc Chagall. There will be free time in the city before we return to Charlemagne for our farewell Gala Dinner.

FRIDAY - METZ-FRANKFURT
After breakfast, the motor coach will drive you back to Frankfort, arriving there by lunch time.

PLEASE NOTE THAT ITINERARIES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE AT ANY TIME DUE TO WATER LEVELS, LOCK CLOSURES OF CIRCUMSTANCES BEYOND OUR CONTROL.

Bad Wimpfen to Koblenz (and reverse), on the Neckar and Rhine Rivers in Germany Available 23 May to 31 October 2009

SATURDAY - BAD WIMPFEN
We meet in Frankfurt and transfer by motor coach to Ms Charlemagne moored in the town of Bad Wimpfen. There is a welcome reception and afterwards, you will be shown to your cabin with time to settle in before dinner is served at 7.30 this evening.

SUNDAY - BAD WIMPFEN – EBERBACH
After breakfast, a visit to the town of Bad Wimpfen. This small fortified town dominates the river and was the ancient Imperial residence of the Hohenstaufen in the 13th c. The town has a picturesque ensemble of half timbered houses that we will discover along the winding streets. We return on board for lunch and in the afternoon, a pleasant cruise to Eberbach. Here the Neckar rejoins the massif stone of l’Odenwald and flows between the lush wooded areas where we can see the roofs of castles. Charlemagne will arrive into Eberbach this evening, it is an agreeable touristique town.

MONDAY - EBERBACH-HEIDELBERG
This morning, a visit to Michelstadt, existing since 741. The town in famous for its numerous half timbered houses, the Rathaus (town hall) and the synagogue dating from 18th c, one of the very few to have survived the nazi period. Also famous, the Einhardsbasilika which was built on the initiative of Einhard a member of the court of Charlemagne in 821. We return to Charlemagne by the romantic road of Odenwald. Lunch is on board and an afternoon cruise through the narrow straits of the Neckar, full of chateaux and small villages. Well known is Hirschhorn with its fortified spur and Neckarsteinach where there are four chateaux. We arrive into Heidelberg in the late afternoon.

TUESDAY - HEIDELBERG-WORMS
This morning, we will visit Heidelberg. This important site of German romanticism has inspired numerous poets seduced by the natural beauty of the town and its ruined chateau built on a hillside. We will have a guided visit of both the city and chateau, this is the pearl of the Neckar route and is far from being a just a museum, today it has a vibrant universite and the students bring lots of life and animation. During lunch on board, we will leave our mooring in Heidelberg and cruise to Mannheim, a large industrial town, this is where the Neckar and the Rhine join. We continue our cruise on the Rhine to Worms one of the three Imperial residences along the Rhine, it constitutes one of the settings for the saga of Niebelungen.

WEDNESDAY - WORMS-MAINZ-RUDESHEIM
This morning, we cruise to Mainz, a city at the confluence of the Rhine and Main rivers and established in 39 B. C. by the Romans. The roman cathedrale confirmed the power of the German kings but has less fame than Gutenberg who invented the printing press. An afternoon cruise along the famous vineyards of the Rheingau to Rudesheim where we find the world renown Drosselgasse rich in wine bars and the mecca of reisling with an incomparable atmosphere.

THURSDAY - RUDESHEIM-BOPPARD-KOBLENZ
This morning we navigate in the heart of the Rhine valley, known as the Romantic Rhine, full of idyllic villages, chateaux, some ruined and all impressionable, together the Lorelei, the legendary rock which has become the symbol of this passage. At Boppard, we stop for a small stroll along the riverside and during lunch on board, we continue our cruising towards Koblenz. After lunch, a guided tour of Koblenz, a city at the confluence of the Rhine and Moselle rivers. We visit the basilica of St Kastor and the monumental statue of the emperor Guillaume 1er. There will be free time in the city before our Farewell Gala dinner this evening.

FRIDAY - KOBLENZ-FRANKFURT
This morning, after breakfast, we return to Frankfort by motor coach, arriving around lunchtime.

PLEASE NOTE THAT ITINERARIES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE AT ANY TIME DUE TO WATER LEVELS, LOCK CLOSURES OR CIRCUMSTANCES BEYOND OUR CONTROL.